The Bounce Back government loan scheme continues to expand. Metro Bank is the latest to try to get money to small businesses. AltFi takes up the story.
The high street bank will be able to offer SMEs loans from £2,000 up to £50,000 following its accreditation by the British Business Bank today.
Metro Bank joins the ever-growing list of 17 other lenders, which includes fintechs such as Starling Bank and Tide.
A spokesperson for the bank said: “We will use the scheme as widely as we can to support our customers and will let customers know as soon as we’re open for applications.”
“Due to the expected level of demand, when we open for applications we will carefully manage the flow so we can maintain our normal high standard of service.
Historical Performance And IFISA Process Guide
That figure is the result of over £21 million of loans facilitated on the site, as we bring individuals looking for a good return on capital together with carefully vetted small companies seeking funds for growth. Bear in mind that lenders’ capital is at risk. Read warnings on site before committing capital.
All loans on site are eligible to be held in a Money&Co. Innovative Finance Individual Savings Account (IFISA), up to the annual ISA limit of £20,000. Such loans offer lenders tax-free income. Our offering is an Innovative Finance ISA (IFISA) that can hold the peer-to-peer (P2P) business loans that Money&Co. facilitates. For the purposes of this article, the terms ISA and IFISA are interchangeable.
So here’s our guide to the process:
The ISA allowance for 2019/20 is unchanged from last tax year at £20,000, allowing a married couple to put £40,000 into a tax-free environment. Over three years, an investment of this scale in two Money&Co. Innovative Finance ISAs would generate £8,400 of income completely free of tax. We’re assuming a 7 per cent return, net of charges and free of tax here.
Once you have made your initial commitment, you might then consider diversifying – buying a spread of loans. To do this, you can go into the “loans for sale” market. All loans bought in this market also qualify for IFISA tax benefits.
Risk: Security, Access, Yield
Do consider not just the return, but the security and the ease of access to your investment. We write regularly about these three key factors. Here’s one of several earlier articles on security, access and yield.